Popular Vietnamese Eatery Shutting Its Doors

By
Adam Chick

Popular Vietnamese Eatery Shutting Its Doors

November 29, 2012Updated Nov 30, 2012 at 12:11 AM EDT

Johnson City, NY (WBNG Binghamton) It's a symbol of the American dream. Two Vietnam refugees move to the area in search of a brighter future for their family. In the process they create a restaurant that has become a mainstay of Greater Binghamton life for the past two decades. But now that era is coming to an end.

Since 1993 the Mekong Vietnamese restaurant has been introducing people in the Southern Tier to all sorts of vietnamese dishes; from the traditional wonton soup, to the bird's nest.

"The community has been really great in embracing our culture and you know, our family as well," said Theresa Truong of Mekong Restaurant.

The restaurant has many unique dishes people are sure to miss.

"I come here all the time. I'm going to miss the Pho the most. The Pho is that delicious bowl of soup they have with all of the mixed ingredients in it. The veggies. The beef. The chicken," said regular Gil Choi.

The restaurant advertised very little. Most of their popularity came from word of mouth. The customers that frequent Mekong will miss the restaurant, but the restaurant will miss them as well.

"This is a bittersweet ending. We're happy to move on to the next phase of our lives but we're going to surly miss all of the great customers that have become friends," said Truong.

"The people are always friendly here and the food's always good," said Alyson Griffiths.

From Pho soup to the birds nest, this place is home to many memories.

"I've gone here a lot when I was younger, so there's a lot of memories here," said 10-year-old Lily Combs.

Mekong isn't closing for monetary reasons. The owners just feel it's time for them to move on with their lives.